Preface
Hello.
The recent state elections have once again highlighted a critical gap in public discourse: the limited engagement with economic issues that directly shape citizens' lives. This highlights the urgent need to strengthen financial literacy as a foundation for meaningful democratic participation
Financial literacy is not only about understanding national budgets; it begins at the local level. Municipal budgets, which determine the quality of urban services and infrastructure, remain largely inaccessible to citizens despite their everyday impact. Improving public understanding of these budgets is essential for fostering accountability and strengthening urban governance.
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In this context, the Policy Research Organization continues its effort to simplify and democratize municipal budget analysis. Now in its sixth year, this initiative aims to make public finance more accessible, enabling citizens, NGOs, and stakeholders to engage more effectively with governance processes.
This year's report, developed with contributions from experts in our team reflects our continued commitment to bridging the gap between data and public understanding.
We hope this work encourages informed dialogue and greater citizen participation in urban governance.
Acknowledgments
This research project is designed, implemented and executed by Team Policy Research Organisation.
On behalf of PRO, Neha Mahajan led the project. Manoj Joshi led the project as Chief Data Analyst. He has put guided efforts to bring the project to its conclusion. Dr Saylee Jog, an assistant professor of economics at GIPE, with prior experience of analysing Municipal Corporation Budget took the charge as Lead Researcher. Gaurav Deshpande took charge of designing and creating the webpage of the report.
We want to extend our gratitude to our Trustees Sharda Bapat, Tanmay Kanitkar and Ankita Abhyankar for their unconditional support throughout the project. Mrs.Ulka Kalaskar (Head, Finance Department Pune Municipal Corporation) and her Department colleagues were very supportive. They helped us in every possible way. We are thankful for their support.
Team
